There is no specific date when the first joke was told between humans. Humor is just an inherited part of humanity. Jokes are a part of every culture but differ according to the values and practices of each one they follow. When there was little technology, all jokes were passed orally. While this is still true today, these funny tales are presented through technological communication as well; known as "E-Lore." E-mail, texting, and television are all ways through which jokes and other tales are expressed and experienced today.
Delivery is EVERYTHING when it comes to jokes. The place, topic, tone of voice, and audience play a large role in the effectiveness of a joke, and getting the response you hope for. Some topics are not appropriate for everyone to hear, and many jokes are offensive to particular races, ethnicities, sexes, age groups, and socio-economic classes. Jokes can be hurtful and not amusing if told to the wrong audiences. Timing, tone, and expressions can also make or break a joke. It could ruin the entire joke if the person who is telling it stutters, stops to think about what to say, or takes too long to tell the joke.
There are many different types of jokes, and each one could be told for a different reason other than entertainment. Jokes could be expressed to make fun of another culture/are group/ race/ etc, or maybe just to make somebody feel better on a a bad day. Whatever the reason is, it was once said that "When the times get tough, the tough tell jokes."
--Four Different Categories of Jokes--
Political Jokes
Racist Jokes
Sports Jokes
Practical Jokes
-Political Jokes-
History:
Political jokes are all the rage right around the time of a presidential election, but are also heard often in your hometown when a mayor or someone of importance is running for office. It is a well-known fact that everybody has their own opinion about what they like or dislike about each candidate, and expressing those opinions through jokes or even political comics are a way for people to let the world know what they think without getting in trouble for it. You will also see political humor being used often in political comics, as shown in the picture below. Whether it be the liberals bashing the conservatives or vice-versa, political jokes have a way of being not only funny, but also could cause quite a stir if told to the wrong person or politcal enemy.
Methodology:
Most of these political jokes were collected from random people by just being out .There were a few instances where grandmother's had a joke or two to share, and other instances where the joke was told to us by someone who heard it from somebody else or got it off of the internet. Some jokes were also collected from text messages. It was amusing to think about how far these jokes have traveled from, and even where they traveled from.
Fieldwork:
The following joke was sent to me as a text message, at 8:45 P.M on Thursday, April 23rd, 2009.
The text read as follows :
"It was once said that a black man would be president when pigs fly!"
"Indeed, 100 days into Obama's presidency, we have an world flu epidemic called the SWINE FLU!"
The first joke made me laugh, not because it was necessarily true, but because it's such a coincidence that something like this would happen in America only 100 days into the Obama presidency. It was a gold mine for all of the conservatives in the world to bash Obama when in reality he had nothing to do with the spread of the swine flu. Even though the joke was meant to make fun of Obama, there were plenty of liberals who also laughed at the joke, so jokes create a sense of unity. While I knew the person who sent me the text, it is most likely that the text has traveled from someone on the other side of the country by someone I don't even know, and later I sent it to some of my friends, who will send it to their friends and so on. It is all a part of technology and the newest way jokes are spread.
Tale Type: 1698G. Misunderstood words lead to comic results. Page 483.
This next joke targets both liberals and conservatives, and was told to me by a man named Jack Berg. I was at his house for an interview when I caught little jokes here and there that he would laugh off. It was Wednesday, May 6th, around 10:00 A.M at his home.
JB: Hilary Clinton wears boxers, Bill Clinton wears briefs, and Obama wears thongs. What does John McCain wear?
CN: I have no idea.....
Answer: ......Depends!......
He laughed for a long time after telling me this joke, and it was kind of funny because this joke is making fun of old people in a way, and Jack, the man who told me the joke, is around 75 years old himself. It showed me that if a joke is truly funny, people will still laugh at them even if it means they are making fun of themselves in the process.
Tale Type: 1920. Contest in lying. Page 514.
The Next joke was actually told by the Grandmother of one of our group members. It is not necessarily your usual knee-slapping joke, but definitely shows the views of younger people vs. older people. Her name was Theresa Toth, she's 78 years old and told this joke to Rachael while on a visit to her home on April 29th, 2009, around 8:00 P.M
Rachael was talking to her Grandmother about Justin Nichols, the 22 year -old mayor that had recently been elected in Manitowoc, Wisconsin.
RT: I can't believe he actually got elected, he's so young!"
ET: "He's not even old enough to drive!"
Most older people will judge a candidate by his experience, or in this case, the lack of. However people of our generation or even our parents will look a little more at what the candidate has to say before making a judgment. Rachael's grandma made a joke about the situation so there would be no hard feelings, something that jokes can cover up fairly well.
Tale Type: 1542. The Clever Boy. Page 445.
The last political joke was told to my parents in a bar named Shuff's in November, 2008, around 10:30 P.M and not too far away from election day. It was obvious that the person who made this joke did not like George W. Bush, because it's rather derogatory.
It goes like this:
Ben and Jerry created "Yes Pecan!" flavored ice cream for Barack Obama. They then asked people to fill in the blank for the following.
For George W. Bush they created "."
Random People say:
" Iraqui Road"
"You're shitting in my mouth and calling it a sundae"
"Mission Pecanplished"
"Chocolate Chimp"
There were many more fill in the blanks, but most of them consisted of negative comments towards George W.Bush. However it seems as though those who do not like him would still get a laugh or two from listening to this joke. It would be interesting to see what would happen if he himself would come across this joke somehow.
Tale Type: 1920 B. Te one that says I have not time to lie, and yet lies. Page 515.
Analysis:
All of the jokes I heard were pretty funny. What was even better is that the jokes were very clever and made you think a little bit before attempting to guess an answer. It seemed like the jokes that the older people told had something to do with age, since one was making fun of John McCain's age and the other was making fun of how young the mayor was. The jokes sent to me as texts or those told by someone who saw them on the internet were a little more judgmental and even dirty. Either way, each one was funny and that is the whole purpose of a joke-to make someone laugh.
~Practical Jokes~
History
Practical jokes are often performed with the intent of embarrassing someone. The most effective practical joke targets one of the victim's weaknessess. Usually, pranks are not harmful, but can be destructive or hurtful. Harmless practical jokes are known as benevolent while the divisive pranks are called malevolent. The difference between these two types of jokes is that in a benevolent joke, the joker laughs along with the victim and are inclusive. With the malevolent form, however, is set up to exclude and humiliate the victim, as well as laughing AT them, instead of with them. There is a fine line between these types of pranks and it is important, if desired, that the joker ensures the victim the joke is all in good fun, instead of intentional harm. To achieve a well played benevolent practical joke, it may be helpful that the joker chooses a victim that is known to take jokes well and someone who is able to laugh at themselves.
A practical joke is usually set up some time before it is revealed to the victim and requires secrecy. Jokers set up fabrications, an unrealistic imitation of some part of reality, to fool the victim. When they finally expose them to the truth, the fabrication is discredited and the victim is able to see what is really going on- that they were tricked (Smith 76). There is a whole day devoted to this kind of joking- April Fool's Day. There is not a clear origin of this holiday, however, many believe it began when the Gregorian calendar took over the Julian form on April 1st. Because of the lack of communication (took place in the 1500s), some people were not informed about the change until years after. These people were known as the "fools" and pulling pranks became tradition after that (snopes.com).
Methodology:
As a group, we observed practical jokes by attending get togethers where many people gathered and were familiar with eachother. Te purpose of these pranks are to be entertained or embarrass the joker's victim. More value is placed on the joke when there are a greater number of people present to observe and enjoy. These get togethers included a college party, a family celebration, a friend's family tradition, and a high school tradition. It is difficult to force a practical joke so we had to be at the right place at the right time to fully capture all the elements of the prank. It was also a challenging task because to understand the joke, we needed to be in on the secrecy. Therefore, it was crucial that we knew and were familiar with the joker themselves. All the practical jokes we observed fall under the benevolent category, nobody was seriously offended or hurt by the pranks we saw.
Field Work: Hair Dryer
On April 23rd, Justin Nagode, a student at UW Sheboygan, pulled a prank on his younger sister. This practical joke took place at Justin's home at around 12 p.m. It was his sister's birthday and in his family, it is traditon to pull a "birthday prank" every year. Before his sister woke up, (around 11:30 a.m.) Justin poured baby powder into his sister's hair dryer. His sister, Erica, woke up around 11:45 and followed her regular Saturday routine and headed straight for the shower. After she finished, the sound of the hair dryer started and was followed by a yell that went something like, "JUSTIN I HATE YOUU!" Justin opened the door to find his raging sister who was covered in white powder. She was furious and slammed the door on his face and got back in the shower.
While the prank was not able to be recorded, the following link portrays the same joke on a different person. Hair Dryer Prank
Many families have traditions with jokes as well as the usual April Fool's Day joes. Joking among family members reflects the value placed on humor by the family. Although Justin's sister was furious with him, she was able to laugh about it later in the day and recognize that it was only part of a tradition.
TALE TYPE: This joke could be placed under the type- 1383, Woman does not know herself in tar and feathers (Tale Types 412). While I'm sure Erica recognized herself after baby powder incident, the situation is similar to this woman who was covered in tar and feathers. Maybe somebody pulled a prank on her and she didn't recognize herself afterward.
Little Joe
I (Rachael Toth) attended a first communion party for my cousin, Olivia. The party took place at her home at around 1 p.m. on April 19th. It was after lunch that my Uncle Pat pulled a prank on Olivia's six year old brother, Joe. Joe and Pat (his father/my uncle) were tossing around a rubber flip flop in their family room when Joe threw it and it hit Pat in the face. (PT= Pat JT=Joe MT=Pat's brother)
PT: Owww! My eye!! (covers eye with hand and runs out of the room)
MT: Joe, I think you really hurt him!
(Joe looks shocked and not sure what to do. Pat returns with a black mark on his face. Joe does not know but he drew it on with a washable marker. It looks like he has a black eye)
PT: Look what you did Joe! (points to black mark under eye)
(Joe remains silent and somewhat confused)
JT: Sorry daddy! I'm really sorry! (frowns and looks down)
(Pat grabs hima and starts tickling him)
PT: Ah just kiddin! I got ya didn't I!?
(Joe laughs)
Joe Toth
Being a part of this family, I know that humor is a huge part of how we communicate. Jokes like this one are very common at our family get togethers. This personified the innocence of children. Joe really thought he hurt his dad and was very apologetic until he found out it was a joke. Sometimes pracitcal jokes are selected on the victim's weaknesses. In this case, Joe's innocence was taken advantage of, but not harmed.
TALE TYPE: This practical joke could be placed under the type- 1264, The boiling of the porridge- the woman thinks the boiling pot is complaining to her (Tale Types 382). Joe wasn't boiling porridge but he did misinterpret what was going on. The reality was that his dad wasn't really hurt, but Joe was fooled to believe a false reality.
Drinks and Sharpies
The next practical joke is very popular at college parties where alcohol is involved. On Saturday, May 2nd, Kathy attended the Mifflin Block Party on the UW Madison campus, This gathering consists of many college age students partying (consuming alcohol) on a particular street. Toward the end of the evening, around 11 p.m., Kathy was in a house on Mifflin where another party was going on. There was a group of young men and women crowded around a young man laying on a couch. The boy had passed out and the rest of his friends were coloring on his face with permanent markers.
The purpose of this joke is to embarrass the one who passes out first. Younger people use this prank at sleepovers to the first person who falls asleep. However, in this case, it is performed on the individual who could not handle the alcohol they drank. Many times, vulgar language and inappropriate images are drawn to make the experience as embarrassing as possible. On this particular student, the jokers have written "Gay For Life" on the left side of his forehead. To many, although certainly not all, college students, going out and partying is a huge part of their weekly activities and pulling this prank on somebody allows them to feel included in a folk group (those able to handle partying) and creates a bond with other students in the same position.
TALE TYPE: This practical joke could be placed under tale type- 1284, Person does not know himself after changing clothes/hairstyle (Tale Types 385). The passed out guy who had marker all over his face probably recognized himself in the morning, however, realized he was taken advantage of due to the fact he passed out in front of his friends. When a prank like this one happens, it is hard to remember how or why it happened.
Saran Wrap Fun
It was Friday, May 1st, the night before Kathy's cousin, Jenna's, high school prom. Jenna is a junior who plays soccer for her school. That night, Jenna and Kathy were watching a movie at Jenna's home, in Sheboygan, when she got a phone call from a restricted number telling her to check out her driveway at around 11:30 p.m. The two went to look and found that Jenna's car was totally wrapped in plastic saran wrap. Jenna shrieked and started running down the street in hopes of finding the jokers. She returned with no luck and they spent the next half hour unwrapping Jenna's car. The following dialouge occured (KM=Kathy JM=Jenna)
KM= So who do you think did this?
JM= Oh I dunno, probably Jake and Kevin.
KM= Are you friends with them?
JM= Yeah we joke around with each other all the time so like I guess i'm not that surprised about it. Plus, this kinda stuff always happens before prom ya know?
KM= Ah I see.
In high school, it is very common for boys to joke around with girls. It goes back to the classic example- If a boy is chasing a girl on the playground at school, it means he actually likes her. This sometimes applies to high school as well. This joke was not meant to be hurtful or embarrassing, but instead meant to give attention to Jenna and get her thinking about who could've pulled this prank on her. Practical jokes are also a local tradition when it comes to high school festivities. In the Sheboygan are, it is common to see houses toilet papered, forked (stabbing plastic forks across the whole yard), or wrapping someone's car in saran wrap before dances like Homecoming and Prom. While Kathy was not able to photograph Jenna's car the night of the joke, it looked similar to this photograph found on the internet:
What Jenna's Car Resembled
TALE TYPE: This practical joke could be placed under the tale type- 1409B, Leave of absence- A wife says to her husband, "You may get away for a little while." After a day he sends a messenger to ask if he's been away long enough (Tale Types 416). This older story depicts a husband who is attatched to his wife. Like him, the boys who wrapped Jenna's car are probably interested in her and showed this interest through a practical joke.
Analysis:
Practical Jokes are very common and occur more often than just on April Fool's day. By looking at the jokes stated above, it is easy to see there is a great variety of pranks people pull. Some are performed to embarrass somebody, while other pranks are pulled to get someone's attention. The best time and place to observe a practical joke is when there is more than one person around and also when the people involved are among the same folk group. This type of joke is also used to establish a relationship with one another. Practical joking can go back and forth, forming an interesting bond based on humor.
Racist/prejudicial jokes History:
Racist jokes are often rooted in stereotypes and a misunderstanding of ethnic cultures. These jokes may also have originated from hatred of those cultures or races. Despite their vulgar origins, they do serve as an effective form of amusement. Racist jokes are usually told among a single race group, but as society has evolved over the decades people are growing less and less selective of their audiences for these jokes. The race groups are accepting and even embracing of certain stereotypes as they have developed a greater inclination to laugh at themselves. Many people tell racist jokes in jest of friends or simply for a laugh, without any malicious intentions toward the group being targeted. However, there are still many individuals who find these jokes offensive regardless of the teller’s intentions. Indeed, most racist jokes are insult oriented; this does not necessarily alter the jokes' value to the group or individual performing the joke. The performers’ purpose for telling jokes and their delivery are key elements in discerning the function of such humor within the group that the joke is told. Though, their reason for telling the jokes may be skewed by the listeners who might distinguish the joke as spiteful, misinterpreting its purpose. That’s not to say such jokes aren’t told to demean certain groups, in fact jokes have been used as a tool to do just that over many years, perpetuating stereotypes making people believe they are universal true.
Methodology: As a group we pooled many of our jokes together and allocated them according to their categories. In my research, the majority of the jokes I heard were in some way racially or culturally oriented and always insulting of a certain group. I gathered many jokes, and describe the ones I found most interesting, not only due to the content of the joke, but also due to the context they were told in. Most of the racial jokes overheard were gathered within a familial context, which I believe depicts the sense of security needed to share such jokes. The explicit and questionable content of the jokes makes them something one wouldn’t share with strangers or relatively new acquaintances, only in two situations of close friends did our group witness a racial joke occur outside a family, those jokes are presented in jokes 3 and 4. We didn’t come across any racial jokes that’s primary function was to discriminate a race or culture. The jokes we found in the Sheboygan area, though crude, were all performed for the purpose of entertaining.
Joke 1: This joke I overheard while my brother and uncle were having a conversation at Piggly Wiggly on May 2, 2009 around noon. It was the day following a suicide at north high school and this was the subject of the conversation.
“Hey, how’s it going, did you hear about the guy who killed himself at north yesterday.”
“Was he white?”
“Yeah…”
“What a shame.”
Tale Type: Corpse killed five times 1536A. This works because the boy who killed himself is being insulted/harmed even after death.
This joke, though cruel, sparked laughter in both me and my brother. We realized how mean it was later and frowned at our response afterward. Still it was funny because it was an unexpected response to a tragic situation. Also, it served to mitigate the tragedy of the previous day. The joke was only funny to us because we understand our uncle’s humor and was raised around such jokes. If our uncle repeated the same remark to another individual who was closer to the boy who killed himself or was vehemently opposed to such racial insults, his audience would be horrified. Our uncle is considerably older, which affects his stance on many things, especially his perception of racist jokes.
Joke 2:
This joke was told by one of our group member’s uncle Morgan. It was performed during a family gathering on April 27th late at night by a family member who had been in another state for several years. He had just arrived and shortly after introductions, used the joke as an effective ice breaker to reconnect with the family. Playful and childlike, the teller always cracks jokes and has an extensive repertoire of jokes on many different topics.
M: What do you call a lesbian dinosaur?
D: What?
M: Lick-a-lot-a-pus.
Tale type for this is 1562A. Things have extraordinary names.
This joke targets more of a cultural group than any specific race group by poking fun at lesbians. The play on words is humorous and inventive, combining a dinosaur sounding name with a suggestive phrase. This pun may appeal to both outsiders of the group being insulted and insiders of the group. The teller and listeners being outsiders in this situation doesn’t necessarily mean they are prejudiced against lesbians or gays, but simply find the play on words and taboo topic humorous. However, as with similar jokes, this one being insult oriented can be used vindictively also. The reasoning for using this joke in this situation was to entertain the audience; its function was not to demean the group. The formal question and answer format of this joke demonstrates the intentions of the teller; why he chose a brief joke over a longer joke. In this case it seemed to be a quick way to reconnect with the family he had been separated from for so long.
Joke 3: This joke was overheard by Kathy when she was out with friends on May 10, 2009. She was with only white people that night and the girl who told the joke told it in such a casual way, and so randomly that served to make it even funnier. The teller usually never told jokes and the surprise that one of the few jokes she ever performed was so perverse, enhanced the joke and made it even funnier.
M: What do you call a black guy with a peg leg?
K: What?
M: Shit on a stick.
Tale type: 1870. Jokes about foreigners
This joke, even more offensive than the previous ones, blatantly devalues black people. The teller in this instance was less derogatory in its usage, however, because she refrained from using another form of the joke in which the term “nigger” is used in reference to the black guy. Despite its negative impact that clearly belittles the black community, the first response to the joke was laughter, though that laughter wavered and diminished rather quickly as we stopped ourselves, realizing the offensive nature of the joke and wanting not to appear racist.
Joke 4: This joke was told at a small party Dylan attended, where a black boy named Troy was present. The black boy, in response to the joke, pretended to be angry and intimidated the white guy, Nick, who told the joke. Then he laughed as Nick tried frantically to explain his actions and revealed he was only messing with him. The black joke goes as follows:
N: Why can’t Stevie wonder read?
E: ‘Cause he’s blind…?
N: No, ‘cause he’s a nigger.
Tale Type: Deaf persons and their foolish answers X111.
The use of the term “nigger” in this joke made some of the listeners uncomfortable, but I believe that discomfort only existed because of Troy’s presence. When Troy responded angrily, everyone, with the exception of a few of his closer friends, believed he was serious. This made the situation even more awkward. As he revealed his deception the people who were uncomfortable slowly collected themselves as they were allowed in on the gag. Once the awkwardness left the room, things resumed as normal. I believe, however, that if Troy weren’t present the racial joke would have been far more amusing on its own.
Racial Jokes Analysis and Conclusion: While investigating it seems that many of the racial jokes are mainly intended by the teller to induce laughter and enjoyment not to condemn the group being insulted. In Sheboygan, these jokes permeate among both the older and younger generations, but it is primarily among the older generation that these jokes appear to be used in sincere disapproval of other races, in severe instances the tellers are ethnocentric and tell the joke’s for the mere purpose of belittling what they perceive as inferior groups of people. I found no such cases of this in my collection of jokes, but I found many cases of younger people who performed racist jokes who were in no way racist. These individuals even had friends of the ethnic group they were insulting, and in one case were in the presence of that person while telling a rather discriminatory joke about his race.
My research yielded a great deal of black jokes, as opposed to other ethnic or cultural jokes. Nearly all of them were in some way insulting, but few were told for the purpose of demeaning those subject to the joke.
Sports Jokes History: Sports Jokes have been around since the first matches started ages ago. They’re a way of lowering your opponents confidence, making light of an athlete’s terrible situation, or just to be cruel to a sport you don’t really appreciate. Sports Jokes will often play at all the rules and regulations that make up a sport, and insult them. Also, if a team or organization is doing poorly, many jokes will circulate on why this may be. The basic purpose of sports jokes are to bash an athlete or a team for any minor to major slip-up, or to give a dig at why a sport is so terribly boring or unimportant. Also, sports jokes can be chants/posters/sayings/etc. that express your frustration for a game or athlete. Sports jokes have been around since the beginning, when organized athletics first begun. By taking time to mess with your opponent, or draw attention to a certain athlete, you can put a good dent in the reputation of a team and thus give your organization more credibility. A good amount of sports consist of the trash-talking and agressiveness that give them their intense nature. Sports jokes are what aid in the rivalry of two organizations.
Methodology
All of these jokes were collected from various sources. One of the jokes was heard in public, while all the other three were heard through some way of technology. It's interesting to see how jokes are being told now-a-days, compared to the way people use to catch wind of jokes. Every group member managed to hear a sports joke in the past 3 weeks or so, and all 4 have an insulting and cruel twist to them. These sports jokes all seem to be jokes which have been circulated through a bunch of people, and have reached our young minds somehow. Enjoy!
Fieldwork:
The first sports joke we collected came from a Cubs/Brewers game that Kathy attended this past Friday. Cubs/Brewers rivarlry has been around since the two organizations have been in play. The Chicago Cubs are hated by many, simply because they usually have an okay season in the summer, but once the later months hit, they are "useless."
On a t-shirt, as well as two signs, Kathy saw... Completely Useless By September
The next joke we collected came from a text message to Rachael's brother, who is a baseball nut. This story has been circulating for some time now, and Rachael recived the text at 8:45 pm on May 7th. Manny Ramirez plays for the Los Angeles Dodgers, and has just recently been suspended for 50 games due to the use of illegal, performance enhancing drugs. Many rumors and speculations have been circulating that the drugs he used are actually hormonal, and other odd reasons.
"Manny Ramirez has been suspended from baseball for 50 games for taking erectile dysfuntion medication. Apparently his bat was corked."
This text message goes to show how quickly information can be spread using technology, as I'm sure Rachael's brother sent that to many of his other friends and fellow sports fanatics.
Another sports joke that was found was emailed to Dylan from his Uncle, who usually sends out mass emails of funny jokes and other e-lore. Dylan recieved this email awhile back, but still had it saved on his computer. We chose to use this because it shows the downfalls to the media getting a hold of an athletes back-story.
The email read, "Michael Vick is apparently shooting a post-prison reality show. Something tells us it won't be on Animal Planet."
The reason why this joke is so important to the project, is because it shows how jokes can usually be accompanied by artwork, or other pictures that may lower the credibility of an athlete. This picture came along with the email, and plays along with Michael Vicks case of being caught running an underground dog-fighting arena. If Michael Vicks show airs, it would start July 20, which is the day set for him to be let out of jail.
The last sports joke we collected was pertaining to Brett Favre. Calli is a die-hard Brett Favre fan, and often recieves some crap from her friends through all different types of communication. This particular joke Calli heard was told to her face-to-face at a get-together with her friends last weekend. Brett Favre has just made his way back into the media, with stories and rumors circulating that Brett Favre may start playing with the Vikings. Most of these are untrue, but all of us know that Brett Favre has always been undecided on where to play, and whether or not he wishes to return to the game and leave retirement.
Calli's friend said to her,
"Why did Brett Favre cross the road?"
"Why?"
"He didn't, he said he was going to, but decided to stand on the corner forever."
This joke definitely shows that a good amount of people are fed up with Brett's lack of making decisions quickly. For as many people as there are out there that love Brett, there are tons that hate his guts.
Analysis/Conclusion
Some of these jokes will have no meaning to people. In order to "get" most of these jokes, you have to be slightly tuned into sports media. Luckily, all of these stories have somehow been mentioned to you in some way, I'm sure. We tell sports jokes to make light of a situation, or to bring a team together. When Cubs fans hear all the negativity which surrounds their team, it only makes them stronger in their allegiance to their team. In today's culture, we tend to almost worship athletes, and put them up on a pedestal. One interesting thing we found was that only one of these jokes was told face-to-face. The others were all seen or sent to us in email or text message. This is interesting, because I'm most certain that ages ago jokes could only have been told face-to-face, before the time of email, cell phones, and television. Since all of these sports jokes are recent news, it will be interesting to see what else circulates in the media about them. I'm sure Rachael will receive more texts, Calli more jokes from her friends, and I'm most certain that the next Cubs/Brewers game I attend will be just as intense as the last. There are plenty of athletes who get along with eachother from different teams, despite all the animosity, but sports jokes will continue to live on because it gives us fans something to find wrong with these people we find so perfect.
Cubs joke : Tale type- 1250A Hampers Piled up to Measure Tower. Bottom removed and all fall. J2133.6.1 With the Cubs, their entire season is built up to be "their" year, but in the end there is no world series in the making, and once again fans are let down.
Michael Vick joke : Tayle type- 1231 The Attack of the Hare. One screams with fright and the animal runs away. J2612 With Michael Vick, there was an attack made on innocent dogs in his dog fighting arena, which were eventually set free after his arrest.
Brett Favre : Tale type- 1204 Fool Keeps Repeating his instructions so as to remember them. He usually forgets them.J2671.2 With Brett Favre, he can never stay in one place for too long, or so the joke says. He is always undecided, and keeps repeating the same stuff over and over again.
Manny Ramirez- Tale type- 1240A Man sits on Branch of Tree. Cuts it off. J2133.4 Manny Ramirez had it all going for him. We worship athletes, and cannot imagine how they would throw it all away for illegal use of drugs. Basically, Manny got himself in trouble, and did it to himself, which shows how he cut off the branch of the tree he was sitting on.
Final Analysis and Conclusion
This project was very insightful for our group. We discovered that there is always a purpose, besides delivering the punchline, to telling a joke. Whether it is to create rivalry, embarrass a friend, or depict one's opinion, jokes carry intricate meanings. Many times, we use jokes to lighten controversial issues, like political elections. Sometimes, jokes are not appropriate and hurtful toward certain folk groups, like racial jokes. Practical jokes are used for both the joker and the victim to have a good laugh, if it is a benevolent prank. Also, sports jokes play a huge role in team rivalry and bonds between sports fanatics. Jokes are a way for people to communicate how they feel about a certain person, folk group, or issue. While many people begin friendships and relationships by joking around, a joke or prank that crosses a line can end one. Some joke tellers will use his or her discretion in determining what may or may not be appropriate for the audience. However there are comedians who are liked because of the vulgar language and risky topics they laugh about. By observing and researching this topic, we have realized that jokes are told more often than we notice and play a big role in how we communicate with everyone we know.
Joe on Bike. Personal photograph by author. 19 Apr. 2009.
Mahnke, Jenna. Personal interview. 1 May 2009.
Smith, Moira. "Jockes and Practical Jokes." The Emergence of Folklore in Everyday Life. Ed. George H. Schoemaker. Bloomington, Indiana: Trickster
Press, 1990. 73-82.
Jokes
---The History of Jokes---
There is no specific date when the first joke was told between humans. Humor is just an inherited part of humanity. Jokes are a part of every culture but differ according to the values and practices of each one they follow. When there was little technology, all jokes were passed orally. While this is still true today, these funny tales are presented through technological communication as well; known as "E-Lore." E-mail, texting, and television are all ways through which jokes and other tales are expressed and experienced today.
Delivery is EVERYTHING when it comes to jokes. The place, topic, tone of voice, and audience play a large role in the effectiveness of a joke, and getting the response you hope for. Some topics are not appropriate for everyone to hear, and many jokes are offensive to particular races, ethnicities, sexes, age groups, and socio-economic classes. Jokes can be hurtful and not amusing if told to the wrong audiences. Timing, tone, and expressions can also make or break a joke. It could ruin the entire joke if the person who is telling it stutters, stops to think about what to say, or takes too long to tell the joke.
There are many different types of jokes, and each one could be told for a different reason other than entertainment. Jokes could be expressed to make fun of another culture/are group/ race/ etc, or maybe just to make somebody feel better on a a bad day. Whatever the reason is, it was once said that "When the times get tough, the tough tell jokes."
--Four Different Categories of Jokes--
-Political Jokes-
History:
Political jokes are all the rage right around the time of a presidential election, but are also heard often in your hometown when a mayor or someone of importance is running for office. It is a well-known fact that everybody has their own opinion about what they like or dislike about each candidate, and expressing those opinions through jokes or even political comics are a way for people to let the world know what they think without getting in trouble for it. You will also see political humor being used often in political comics, as shown in the picture below. Whether it be the liberals bashing the conservatives or vice-versa, political jokes have a way of being not only funny, but also could cause quite a stir if told to the wrong person or politcal enemy.
Methodology:
Most of these political jokes were collected from random people by just being out .There were a few instances where grandmother's had a joke or two to share, and other instances where the joke was told to us by someone who heard it from somebody else or got it off of the internet. Some jokes were also collected from text messages. It was amusing to think about how far these jokes have traveled from, and even where they traveled from.
Fieldwork:
The following joke was sent to me as a text message, at 8:45 P.M on Thursday, April 23rd, 2009.
The text read as follows :
"It was once said that a black man would be president when pigs fly!"
"Indeed, 100 days into Obama's presidency, we have an world flu epidemic called the SWINE FLU!"
The first joke made me laugh, not because it was necessarily true, but because it's such a coincidence that something like this would happen in America only 100 days into the Obama presidency. It was a gold mine for all of the conservatives in the world to bash Obama when in reality he had nothing to do with the spread of the swine flu. Even though the joke was meant to make fun of Obama, there were plenty of liberals who also laughed at the joke, so jokes create a sense of unity. While I knew the person who sent me the text, it is most likely that the text has traveled from someone on the other side of the country by someone I don't even know, and later I sent it to some of my friends, who will send it to their friends and so on. It is all a part of technology and the newest way jokes are spread.
Tale Type: 1698G. Misunderstood words lead to comic results. Page 483.
This next joke targets both liberals and conservatives, and was told to me by a man named Jack Berg. I was at his house for an interview when I caught little jokes here and there that he would laugh off. It was Wednesday, May 6th, around 10:00 A.M at his home.
JB: Hilary Clinton wears boxers, Bill Clinton wears briefs, and Obama wears thongs. What does John McCain wear?
CN: I have no idea.....
Answer: ......Depends!......
He laughed for a long time after telling me this joke, and it was kind of funny because this joke is making fun of old people in a way, and Jack, the man who told me the joke, is around 75 years old himself. It showed me that if a joke is truly funny, people will still laugh at them even if it means they are making fun of themselves in the process.
Tale Type: 1920. Contest in lying. Page 514.
The Next joke was actually told by the Grandmother of one of our group members. It is not necessarily your usual knee-slapping joke, but definitely shows the views of younger people vs. older people. Her name was Theresa Toth, she's 78 years old and told this joke to Rachael while on a visit to her home on April 29th, 2009, around 8:00 P.M
Rachael was talking to her Grandmother about Justin Nichols, the 22 year -old mayor that had recently been elected in Manitowoc, Wisconsin.
RT: I can't believe he actually got elected, he's so young!"
ET: "He's not even old enough to drive!"
Most older people will judge a candidate by his experience, or in this case, the lack of. However people of our generation or even our parents will look a little more at what the candidate has to say before making a judgment. Rachael's grandma made a joke about the situation so there would be no hard feelings, something that jokes can cover up fairly well.
Tale Type: 1542. The Clever Boy. Page 445.
The last political joke was told to my parents in a bar named Shuff's in November, 2008, around 10:30 P.M and not too far away from election day. It was obvious that the person who made this joke did not like George W. Bush, because it's rather derogatory.
It goes like this:
Ben and Jerry created "Yes Pecan!" flavored ice cream for Barack Obama. They then asked people to fill in the blank for the following.
For George W. Bush they created "."
Random People say:
" Iraqui Road"
"You're shitting in my mouth and calling it a sundae"
"Mission Pecanplished"
"Chocolate Chimp"
There were many more fill in the blanks, but most of them consisted of negative comments towards George W.Bush. However it seems as though those who do not like him would still get a laugh or two from listening to this joke. It would be interesting to see what would happen if he himself would come across this joke somehow.
Tale Type: 1920 B. Te one that says I have not time to lie, and yet lies. Page 515.
Analysis:
All of the jokes I heard were pretty funny. What was even better is that the jokes were very clever and made you think a little bit before attempting to guess an answer. It seemed like the jokes that the older people told had something to do with age, since one was making fun of John McCain's age and the other was making fun of how young the mayor was. The jokes sent to me as texts or those told by someone who saw them on the internet were a little more judgmental and even dirty. Either way, each one was funny and that is the whole purpose of a joke-to make someone laugh.
~Practical Jokes~
History
Practical jokes are often performed with the intent of embarrassing someone. The most effective practical joke targets one of the victim's weaknessess. Usually, pranks are not harmful, but can be destructive or hurtful. Harmless practical jokes are known as benevolent while the divisive pranks are called malevolent. The difference between these two types of jokes is that in a benevolent joke, the joker laughs along with the victim and are inclusive. With the malevolent form, however, is set up to exclude and humiliate the victim, as well as laughing AT them, instead of with them. There is a fine line between these types of pranks and it is important, if desired, that the joker ensures the victim the joke is all in good fun, instead of intentional harm. To achieve a well played benevolent practical joke, it may be helpful that the joker chooses a victim that is known to take jokes well and someone who is able to laugh at themselves.
A practical joke is usually set up some time before it is revealed to the victim and requires secrecy. Jokers set up fabrications, an unrealistic imitation of some part of reality, to fool the victim. When they finally expose them to the truth, the fabrication is discredited and the victim is able to see what is really going on- that they were tricked (Smith 76). There is a whole day devoted to this kind of joking- April Fool's Day. There is not a clear origin of this holiday, however, many believe it began when the Gregorian calendar took over the Julian form on April 1st. Because of the lack of communication (took place in the 1500s), some people were not informed about the change until years after. These people were known as the "fools" and pulling pranks became tradition after that (snopes.com).
Methodology:
As a group, we observed practical jokes by attending get togethers where many people gathered and were familiar with eachother. Te purpose of these pranks are to be entertained or embarrass the joker's victim. More value is placed on the joke when there are a greater number of people present to observe and enjoy. These get togethers included a college party, a family celebration, a friend's family tradition, and a high school tradition. It is difficult to force a practical joke so we had to be at the right place at the right time to fully capture all the elements of the prank. It was also a challenging task because to understand the joke, we needed to be in on the secrecy. Therefore, it was crucial that we knew and were familiar with the joker themselves. All the practical jokes we observed fall under the benevolent category, nobody was seriously offended or hurt by the pranks we saw.
Field Work:
Hair Dryer
On April 23rd, Justin Nagode, a student at UW Sheboygan, pulled a prank on his younger sister. This practical joke took place at Justin's home at around 12 p.m. It was his sister's birthday and in his family, it is traditon to pull a "birthday prank" every year. Before his sister woke up, (around 11:30 a.m.) Justin poured baby powder into his sister's hair dryer. His sister, Erica, woke up around 11:45 and followed her regular Saturday routine and headed straight for the shower. After she finished, the sound of the hair dryer started and was followed by a yell that went something like, "JUSTIN I HATE YOUU!" Justin opened the door to find his raging sister who was covered in white powder. She was furious and slammed the door on his face and got back in the shower.
While the prank was not able to be recorded, the following link portrays the same joke on a different person.
Hair Dryer Prank
Many families have traditions with jokes as well as the usual April Fool's Day joes. Joking among family members reflects the value placed on humor by the family. Although Justin's sister was furious with him, she was able to laugh about it later in the day and recognize that it was only part of a tradition.
TALE TYPE: This joke could be placed under the type- 1383, Woman does not know herself in tar and feathers (Tale Types 412). While I'm sure Erica recognized herself after baby powder incident, the situation is similar to this woman who was covered in tar and feathers. Maybe somebody pulled a prank on her and she didn't recognize herself afterward.
Little Joe
I (Rachael Toth) attended a first communion party for my cousin, Olivia. The party took place at her home at around 1 p.m. on April 19th. It was after lunch that my Uncle Pat pulled a prank on Olivia's six year old brother, Joe. Joe and Pat (his father/my uncle) were tossing around a rubber flip flop in their family room when Joe threw it and it hit Pat in the face. (PT= Pat JT=Joe MT=Pat's brother)
PT: Owww! My eye!! (covers eye with hand and runs out of the room)
MT: Joe, I think you really hurt him!
(Joe looks shocked and not sure what to do. Pat returns with a black mark on his face. Joe does not know but he drew it on with a washable marker. It looks like he has a black eye)
PT: Look what you did Joe! (points to black mark under eye)
(Joe remains silent and somewhat confused)
JT: Sorry daddy! I'm really sorry! (frowns and looks down)
(Pat grabs hima and starts tickling him)
PT: Ah just kiddin! I got ya didn't I!?
(Joe laughs)
Being a part of this family, I know that humor is a huge part of how we communicate. Jokes like this one are very common at our family get togethers. This personified the innocence of children. Joe really thought he hurt his dad and was very apologetic until he found out it was a joke. Sometimes pracitcal jokes are selected on the victim's weaknesses. In this case, Joe's innocence was taken advantage of, but not harmed.
TALE TYPE: This practical joke could be placed under the type- 1264, The boiling of the porridge- the woman thinks the boiling pot is complaining to her (Tale Types 382). Joe wasn't boiling porridge but he did misinterpret what was going on. The reality was that his dad wasn't really hurt, but Joe was fooled to believe a false reality.
Drinks and Sharpies
The next practical joke is very popular at college parties where alcohol is involved. On Saturday, May 2nd, Kathy attended the Mifflin Block Party on the UW Madison campus, This gathering consists of many college age students partying (consuming alcohol) on a particular street. Toward the end of the evening, around 11 p.m., Kathy was in a house on Mifflin where another party was going on. There was a group of young men and women crowded around a young man laying on a couch. The boy had passed out and the rest of his friends were coloring on his face with permanent markers.
The purpose of this joke is to embarrass the one who passes out first. Younger people use this prank at sleepovers to the first person who falls asleep. However, in this case, it is performed on the individual who could not handle the alcohol they drank. Many times, vulgar language and inappropriate images are drawn to make the experience as embarrassing as possible. On this particular student, the jokers have written "Gay For Life" on the left side of his forehead. To many, although certainly not all, college students, going out and partying is a huge part of their weekly activities and pulling this prank on somebody allows them to feel included in a folk group (those able to handle partying) and creates a bond with other students in the same position.
TALE TYPE: This practical joke could be placed under tale type- 1284, Person does not know himself after changing clothes/hairstyle (Tale Types 385). The passed out guy who had marker all over his face probably recognized himself in the morning, however, realized he was taken advantage of due to the fact he passed out in front of his friends. When a prank like this one happens, it is hard to remember how or why it happened.
Saran Wrap Fun
It was Friday, May 1st, the night before Kathy's cousin, Jenna's, high school prom. Jenna is a junior who plays soccer for her school. That night, Jenna and Kathy were watching a movie at Jenna's home, in Sheboygan, when she got a phone call from a restricted number telling her to check out her driveway at around 11:30 p.m. The two went to look and found that Jenna's car was totally wrapped in plastic saran wrap. Jenna shrieked and started running down the street in hopes of finding the jokers. She returned with no luck and they spent the next half hour unwrapping Jenna's car. The following dialouge occured (KM=Kathy JM=Jenna)
KM= So who do you think did this?
JM= Oh I dunno, probably Jake and Kevin.
KM= Are you friends with them?
JM= Yeah we joke around with each other all the time so like I guess i'm not that surprised about it. Plus, this kinda stuff always happens before prom ya know?
KM= Ah I see.
In high school, it is very common for boys to joke around with girls. It goes back to the classic example- If a boy is chasing a girl on the playground at school, it means he actually likes her. This sometimes applies to high school as well. This joke was not meant to be hurtful or embarrassing, but instead meant to give attention to Jenna and get her thinking about who could've pulled this prank on her. Practical jokes are also a local tradition when it comes to high school festivities. In the Sheboygan are, it is common to see houses toilet papered, forked (stabbing plastic forks across the whole yard), or wrapping someone's car in saran wrap before dances like Homecoming and Prom. While Kathy was not able to photograph Jenna's car the night of the joke, it looked similar to this photograph found on the internet:
TALE TYPE: This practical joke could be placed under the tale type- 1409B, Leave of absence- A wife says to her husband, "You may get away for a little while." After a day he sends a messenger to ask if he's been away long enough (Tale Types 416). This older story depicts a husband who is attatched to his wife. Like him, the boys who wrapped Jenna's car are probably interested in her and showed this interest through a practical joke.
Analysis:
Practical Jokes are very common and occur more often than just on April Fool's day. By looking at the jokes stated above, it is easy to see there is a great variety of pranks people pull. Some are performed to embarrass somebody, while other pranks are pulled to get someone's attention. The best time and place to observe a practical joke is when there is more than one person around and also when the people involved are among the same folk group. This type of joke is also used to establish a relationship with one another. Practical joking can go back and forth, forming an interesting bond based on humor.
Racist/prejudicial jokes
History:
Racist jokes are often rooted in stereotypes and a misunderstanding of ethnic cultures. These jokes may also have originated from hatred of those cultures or races. Despite their vulgar origins, they do serve as an effective form of amusement. Racist jokes are usually told among a single race group, but as society has evolved over the decades people are growing less and less selective of their audiences for these jokes. The race groups are accepting and even embracing of certain stereotypes as they have developed a greater inclination to laugh at themselves. Many people tell racist jokes in jest of friends or simply for a laugh, without any malicious intentions toward the group being targeted. However, there are still many individuals who find these jokes offensive regardless of the teller’s intentions. Indeed, most racist jokes are insult oriented; this does not necessarily alter the jokes' value to the group or individual performing the joke. The performers’ purpose for telling jokes and their delivery are key elements in discerning the function of such humor within the group that the joke is told. Though, their reason for telling the jokes may be skewed by the listeners who might distinguish the joke as spiteful, misinterpreting its purpose. That’s not to say such jokes aren’t told to demean certain groups, in fact jokes have been used as a tool to do just that over many years, perpetuating stereotypes making people believe they are universal true.
Methodology:
As a group we pooled many of our jokes together and allocated them according to their categories. In my research, the majority of the jokes I heard were in some way racially or culturally oriented and always insulting of a certain group. I gathered many jokes, and describe the ones I found most interesting, not only due to the content of the joke, but also due to the context they were told in. Most of the racial jokes overheard were gathered within a familial context, which I believe depicts the sense of security needed to share such jokes. The explicit and questionable content of the jokes makes them something one wouldn’t share with strangers or relatively new acquaintances, only in two situations of close friends did our group witness a racial joke occur outside a family, those jokes are presented in jokes 3 and 4. We didn’t come across any racial jokes that’s primary function was to discriminate a race or culture. The jokes we found in the Sheboygan area, though crude, were all performed for the purpose of entertaining.
Joke 1:
This joke I overheard while my brother and uncle were having a conversation at Piggly Wiggly on May 2, 2009 around noon. It was the day following a suicide at north high school and this was the subject of the conversation.
“Hey, how’s it going, did you hear about the guy who killed himself at north yesterday.”
“Was he white?”
“Yeah…”
“What a shame.”
Tale Type: Corpse killed five times 1536A. This works because the boy who killed himself is being insulted/harmed even after death.
This joke, though cruel, sparked laughter in both me and my brother. We realized how mean it was later and frowned at our response afterward. Still it was funny because it was an unexpected response to a tragic situation. Also, it served to mitigate the tragedy of the previous day. The joke was only funny to us because we understand our uncle’s humor and was raised around such jokes. If our uncle repeated the same remark to another individual who was closer to the boy who killed himself or was vehemently opposed to such racial insults, his audience would be horrified. Our uncle is considerably older, which affects his stance on many things, especially his perception of racist jokes.
Joke 2:
This joke was told by one of our group member’s uncle Morgan. It was performed during a family gathering on April 27th late at night by a family member who had been in another state for several years. He had just arrived and shortly after introductions, used the joke as an effective ice breaker to reconnect with the family. Playful and childlike, the teller always cracks jokes and has an extensive repertoire of jokes on many different topics.
M: What do you call a lesbian dinosaur?
D: What?
M: Lick-a-lot-a-pus.
Tale type for this is 1562A. Things have extraordinary names.
This joke targets more of a cultural group than any specific race group by poking fun at lesbians. The play on words is humorous and inventive, combining a dinosaur sounding name with a suggestive phrase. This pun may appeal to both outsiders of the group being insulted and insiders of the group. The teller and listeners being outsiders in this situation doesn’t necessarily mean they are prejudiced against lesbians or gays, but simply find the play on words and taboo topic humorous. However, as with similar jokes, this one being insult oriented can be used vindictively also. The reasoning for using this joke in this situation was to entertain the audience; its function was not to demean the group. The formal question and answer format of this joke demonstrates the intentions of the teller; why he chose a brief joke over a longer joke. In this case it seemed to be a quick way to reconnect with the family he had been separated from for so long.
Joke 3:
This joke was overheard by Kathy when she was out with friends on May 10, 2009. She was with only white people that night and the girl who told the joke told it in such a casual way, and so randomly that served to make it even funnier. The teller usually never told jokes and the surprise that one of the few jokes she ever performed was so perverse, enhanced the joke and made it even funnier.
M: What do you call a black guy with a peg leg?
K: What?
M: Shit on a stick.
Tale type: 1870. Jokes about foreigners
This joke, even more offensive than the previous ones, blatantly devalues black people. The teller in this instance was less derogatory in its usage, however, because she refrained from using another form of the joke in which the term “nigger” is used in reference to the black guy. Despite its negative impact that clearly belittles the black community, the first response to the joke was laughter, though that laughter wavered and diminished rather quickly as we stopped ourselves, realizing the offensive nature of the joke and wanting not to appear racist.
Joke 4:
This joke was told at a small party Dylan attended, where a black boy named Troy was present. The black boy, in response to the joke, pretended to be angry and intimidated the white guy, Nick, who told the joke. Then he laughed as Nick tried frantically to explain his actions and revealed he was only messing with him. The black joke goes as follows:
N: Why can’t Stevie wonder read?
E: ‘Cause he’s blind…?
N: No, ‘cause he’s a nigger.
Tale Type: Deaf persons and their foolish answers X111.
The use of the term “nigger” in this joke made some of the listeners uncomfortable, but I believe that discomfort only existed because of Troy’s presence. When Troy responded angrily, everyone, with the exception of a few of his closer friends, believed he was serious. This made the situation even more awkward. As he revealed his deception the people who were uncomfortable slowly collected themselves as they were allowed in on the gag. Once the awkwardness left the room, things resumed as normal. I believe, however, that if Troy weren’t present the racial joke would have been far more amusing on its own.
Racial Jokes Analysis and Conclusion:
While investigating it seems that many of the racial jokes are mainly intended by the teller to induce laughter and enjoyment not to condemn the group being insulted. In Sheboygan, these jokes permeate among both the older and younger generations, but it is primarily among the older generation that these jokes appear to be used in sincere disapproval of other races, in severe instances the tellers are ethnocentric and tell the joke’s for the mere purpose of belittling what they perceive as inferior groups of people. I found no such cases of this in my collection of jokes, but I found many cases of younger people who performed racist jokes who were in no way racist. These individuals even had friends of the ethnic group they were insulting, and in one case were in the presence of that person while telling a rather discriminatory joke about his race.
My research yielded a great deal of black jokes, as opposed to other ethnic or cultural jokes. Nearly all of them were in some way insulting, but few were told for the purpose of demeaning those subject to the joke.
Sports Jokes
History:
Sports Jokes have been around since the first matches started ages ago. They’re a way of lowering your opponents confidence, making light of an athlete’s terrible situation, or just to be cruel to a sport you don’t really appreciate. Sports Jokes will often play at all the rules and regulations that make up a sport, and insult them. Also, if a team or organization is doing poorly, many jokes will circulate on why this may be. The basic purpose of sports jokes are to bash an athlete or a team for any minor to major slip-up, or to give a dig at why a sport is so terribly boring or unimportant. Also, sports jokes can be chants/posters/sayings/etc. that express your frustration for a game or athlete. Sports jokes have been around since the beginning, when organized athletics first begun. By taking time to mess with your opponent, or draw attention to a certain athlete, you can put a good dent in the reputation of a team and thus give your organization more credibility. A good amount of sports consist of the trash-talking and agressiveness that give them their intense nature. Sports jokes are what aid in the rivalry of two organizations.
Methodology
All of these jokes were collected from various sources. One of the jokes was heard in public, while all the other three were heard through some way of technology. It's interesting to see how jokes are being told now-a-days, compared to the way people use to catch wind of jokes. Every group member managed to hear a sports joke in the past 3 weeks or so, and all 4 have an insulting and cruel twist to them. These sports jokes all seem to be jokes which have been circulated through a bunch of people, and have reached our young minds somehow. Enjoy!
Fieldwork:
The first sports joke we collected came from a Cubs/Brewers game that Kathy attended this past Friday. Cubs/Brewers rivarlry has been around since the two organizations have been in play. The Chicago Cubs are hated by many, simply because they usually have an okay season in the summer, but once the later months hit, they are "useless."
On a t-shirt, as well as two signs, Kathy saw...
Completely
Useless
By
September
The next joke we collected came from a text message to Rachael's brother, who is a baseball nut. This story has been circulating for some time now, and Rachael recived the text at 8:45 pm on May 7th. Manny Ramirez plays for the Los Angeles Dodgers, and has just recently been suspended for 50 games due to the use of illegal, performance enhancing drugs. Many rumors and speculations have been circulating that the drugs he used are actually hormonal, and other odd reasons.
"Manny Ramirez has been suspended from baseball for 50 games for taking erectile dysfuntion medication. Apparently his bat was corked."
This text message goes to show how quickly information can be spread using technology, as I'm sure Rachael's brother sent that to many of his other friends and fellow sports fanatics.
Another sports joke that was found was emailed to Dylan from his Uncle, who usually sends out mass emails of funny jokes and other e-lore. Dylan recieved this email awhile back, but still had it saved on his computer. We chose to use this because it shows the downfalls to the media getting a hold of an athletes back-story.
The email read, "Michael Vick is apparently shooting a post-prison reality show. Something tells us it won't be on Animal Planet."
The reason why this joke is so important to the project, is because it shows how jokes can usually be accompanied by artwork, or other pictures that may lower the credibility of an athlete. This picture came along with the email, and plays along with Michael Vicks case of being caught running an underground dog-fighting arena. If Michael Vicks show airs, it would start July 20, which is the day set for him to be let out of jail.
The last sports joke we collected was pertaining to Brett Favre. Calli is a die-hard Brett Favre fan, and often recieves some crap from her friends through all different types of communication. This particular joke Calli heard was told to her face-to-face at a get-together with her friends last weekend. Brett Favre has just made his way back into the media, with stories and rumors circulating that Brett Favre may start playing with the Vikings. Most of these are untrue, but all of us know that Brett Favre has always been undecided on where to play, and whether or not he wishes to return to the game and leave retirement.
Calli's friend said to her,
"Why did Brett Favre cross the road?"
"Why?"
"He didn't, he said he was going to, but decided to stand on the corner forever."
This joke definitely shows that a good amount of people are fed up with Brett's lack of making decisions quickly. For as many people as there are out there that love Brett, there are tons that hate his guts.
Analysis/Conclusion
Some of these jokes will have no meaning to people. In order to "get" most of these jokes, you have to be slightly tuned into sports media. Luckily, all of these stories have somehow been mentioned to you in some way, I'm sure. We tell sports jokes to make light of a situation, or to bring a team together. When Cubs fans hear all the negativity which surrounds their team, it only makes them stronger in their allegiance to their team. In today's culture, we tend to almost worship athletes, and put them up on a pedestal. One interesting thing we found was that only one of these jokes was told face-to-face. The others were all seen or sent to us in email or text message. This is interesting, because I'm most certain that ages ago jokes could only have been told face-to-face, before the time of email, cell phones, and television. Since all of these sports jokes are recent news, it will be interesting to see what else circulates in the media about them. I'm sure Rachael will receive more texts, Calli more jokes from her friends, and I'm most certain that the next Cubs/Brewers game I attend will be just as intense as the last. There are plenty of athletes who get along with eachother from different teams, despite all the animosity, but sports jokes will continue to live on because it gives us fans something to find wrong with these people we find so perfect.
Cubs joke : Tale type- 1250A Hampers Piled up to Measure Tower. Bottom removed and all fall. J2133.6.1 With the Cubs, their entire season is built up to be "their" year, but in the end there is no world series in the making, and once again fans are let down.
Michael Vick joke : Tayle type- 1231 The Attack of the Hare. One screams with fright and the animal runs away. J2612 With Michael Vick, there was an attack made on innocent dogs in his dog fighting arena, which were eventually set free after his arrest.
Brett Favre : Tale type- 1204 Fool Keeps Repeating his instructions so as to remember them. He usually forgets them. J2671.2 With Brett Favre, he can never stay in one place for too long, or so the joke says. He is always undecided, and keeps repeating the same stuff over and over again.
Manny Ramirez- Tale type- 1240A Man sits on Branch of Tree. Cuts it off. J2133.4 Manny Ramirez had it all going for him. We worship athletes, and cannot imagine how they would throw it all away for illegal use of drugs. Basically, Manny got himself in trouble, and did it to himself, which shows how he cut off the branch of the tree he was sitting on.
Final Analysis and Conclusion
This project was very insightful for our group. We discovered that there is always a purpose, besides delivering the punchline, to telling a joke. Whether it is to create rivalry, embarrass a friend, or depict one's opinion, jokes carry intricate meanings. Many times, we use jokes to lighten controversial issues, like political elections. Sometimes, jokes are not appropriate and hurtful toward certain folk groups, like racial jokes. Practical jokes are used for both the joker and the victim to have a good laugh, if it is a benevolent prank. Also, sports jokes play a huge role in team rivalry and bonds between sports fanatics. Jokes are a way for people to communicate how they feel about a certain person, folk group, or issue. While many people begin friendships and relationships by joking around, a joke or prank that crosses a line can end one. Some joke tellers will use his or her discretion in determining what may or may not be appropriate for the audience. However there are comedians who are liked because of the vulgar language and risky topics they laugh about. By observing and researching this topic, we have realized that jokes are told more often than we notice and play a big role in how we communicate with everyone we know.
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